MIKE DEAN Hopes KEENAN-Fronted Version Of CORROSION OF CONFORMITY Will Do Something Soon

Mark Kadzielawa of 69 Faces Of Rock recently conducted an interview with CORROSION OF CONFORMITY bassist/vocalist Mike Dean. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

69 Faces Of Rock: You really surprised the fans by going back to the three-piece format a few years ago, and a self-titled album that followed. How was it received?

Mike Dean: I think it was a good response, once people heard it. I think there were a few people who didn't want to hear it because Pepper Keenan [guitar, vocals] was not on it, so there was a little bit of that type of static, but we knew that, and we don't get involved in that. We have a very good relationship with Pepper. I thought the self-titled album made a pretty good impact. It was not what a lot of people expected. It wasn't a strictly old-school hardcore/crossover record by any means. It was a unique combination of sounds, and we were pretty happy with it. We were just as happy to evolve and do something else.

69 Faces Of Rock: Of course you didn't stop there, a new album, "IX", is about to be released, and you continue to function as three-piece for another cycle.

Mike Dean: I think it all evolved pretty well. When we did the previous record, we haven't been playing that many shows. So we had to sort of find out what our identity was as a three-piece band. We wanted to make it authentic, both from the historical perspective and from the current perspective. And the best way to do that is to get out in front of people and play shows. We did that, and once we did that, the next batch of ideas were born out of playing live. With "IX", we wanted to sound like us live, and the key to that is getting Woody Weatherman's live guitar rig set up in the studio. Set it up like you're gonna play live, and put some microphones in front of it until it feels like you're there at the show. Once we did that, it really came together, and the stuff that we worked out in the practice translated into the studio better. This album and the previous EP were just an attempt to start from the documentarian point of view, and just enhance that a little bit.

69 Faces Of Rock: C.O.C. is probably the only underground band that can successfully function in two different configurations. You have the three-piece that made their mark in the '80s, and the four-piece with Pepper Keenan that redefined itself in the '90s. How does that work?

Mike Dean: It works because we don't really listen to advice which makes us able to do things, and we just forge ahead. I think all of us, Pepper included, have a wide appreciation for different styles of music and things like that. What we're doing as a three-piece isn't really that far away from what we might be doing as a four-piece, only you get the contributions from Pepper. We don't give it a lot of analysis basically. We just try to deliver a little bit of variety.

69 Faces Of Rock: And for the fans of four-piece with Pepper Keenan, when will their anticipation be rewarded?

Mike Dean: I hope soon. I don't have a specific timetable where I can say to you. We're doing a little bit of planning and seeing how we can fit that in. In a way, maybe it's not as soon as I would like, but it gives us a chance to promote this record and to share these songs with people for a little bit longer. We do have some plans in works, and we hope to come to logistical solutions.

Read the entire interview at 69 Faces Of Rock.